breakfast

We all agree that the weeks after the long weekends are the hardest, right?

Because I believe this to be a truth, I’m feeling like THIS weekend should be the special one. We’re celebrating making it through a gob-ton of rain and FOUR WHOLE DAYS OF WORK. We’ve earned this.

I’ve made these pancakes three or four times now, after maybe a year of trying different recipes for things labeled “regular pancakes” or similar. There are gazillions of recipes like this on the internet, but this is the first one that I’ve been consistently impressed with. It doesn’t have random ingredients, the measurements are simple (lots of 2-of-x), and the quantity isn’t so massive that you need to have your entire extended family over to enjoy these. Or may be we eat large portions. The original recipe is by Mark Bittman, but I found it on Tracy’s site and her pictures made me feel like these were the pancakes of my weekend dreams, for sure.

These pancakes are, in a sense, regular, but I don’t see that as a bad thing. I’m all about jazzed up things, but a plain waffle? pancake? burger? Some classics are, to me, perfect as they are and I’d much prefer to have a basic version over and over than be constantly reinventing something that’s already great. This is particularly true for me re: breakfast foods because we don’t make them a ton, so when we do I’m all about ease and nostalgia.

Beck has taken to “helping” make these pancakes, and loves them plain, although waiting for them to cool down is so.hard. “I DON’T WANT THESE PANCAKES TO BE HOT!!!” and somehow the act of taking a bit longer to make breakfast makes her think that she can walk around while eating, which we’ve become entirely too permissive with on mornings where we’d like to drink coffee without rushing around to fetch things and deliver them to the high chair. Beck loves these so much, in fact, that yesterday morning she had a full on meltdown because the last one of this particular batch had gotten moldy after we’d told her it was hers for breakfast. ~baby wailing~ “but I want to eat that last pancake I don’t want it to be in the trashcannnnnn….!” Don’t worry, we fixed that one with a leftover chocolate chip bagel like the stellar parents we are.

Here’s your new favorite brunch item! Baked eggs. Anyone who knows me knows that I do not actually like eggs in their purest form. Runny yolks are questionable, don’t get me started on hard boiled eggs, and scrambled eggs are good for approximately 3 seconds before they turn cold and sad. Omelettes are on my happy list because veggies and cheese can be involved, and quiche is a no-brainer because of the crust, clearly. However, I’m always on the hunt for ways to use eggs that I do like, because they’re cheap and a great source of vegetarian protein.

Obviously I added pork to this so we are NOT left with a vegetarian dish, but what we end up with instead is something similar to shakshuka, a Middle Eastern baked eggs dish that I’m super into finding pictures of on the internet because the combination of flavors and textures and colors is just so pretty and appealing to me. Tangy sweet tomatoes, creamy eggs, garlic + onion, and I started with chorizo to bring extra savory flavor to the party.

Bread for dunking is a must, mimosas would be perfect for a brunch. If you serve this for a morning situation, I love that it can alllllmost be made in advance; make the tomato sauce, leave it (covered in the fridge) in the skillet overnight, then crack the eggs into the skillet in the morning, bake the eggs, and brunch! I have a few fun weekend-morning events coming up, and I’m thinking this would be perfect for a shower or early-in-the-day birthday party, right?

Happy Monday! We’re starting with chocolate. And why not, really? There is a perception that chocolate is always unhealthy, but I think it’s more that when cocoa powder is served with sugar + fat + carbs we run into issues. This has those things, certainly, but it also has chia seeds, peanut butter, honey instead of sugar (still acts like sugar, though, don’t be totally fooled), and dairy that can be lower in fat if you choose. You can also sub the milk + cream for coconut milk and/or almond milk if you’re dairy-free, so lots of options here!

The point is more that things called pudding can definitely be good for breakfast or snacks or dessert. Chia pudding in particular is so easy to make, and I don’t know many people who dislike the chocolate+peanut butter combination, seriously. I love making a big batch like this while something else is cooking (because it takes all of 5 minutes), then keeping it in the fridge for several days to grab when we need something fast. This version has slightly more liquid than other variations for a creamier effect, and I DID throw some peanut butter cups on top for a visual (and because they are delicious, obviously) and to up the dessert-factor of these. Maybe leave them off if you make this for breakfast, maybe don’t.

I don’t know about you, but capers for breakfast are my total jam. Instead of, like, jam.

Here’s my thing with breakfast: It’s never my go-to food group. I don’t like eggs much, don’t care a ton to eat a mountain of sugar first thing in the world, and you can only eat so much bacon and drink so many mimosas before you’re all GET ME TO GYM EVEN THOUGH I HATE GYM, you know? It becomes a bit much. I do, however, very much enjoy brunch menus that include fully lunch-appropriate items because I find nothing wrong with eating a fried chicken sandwich at 9am, thank you very much.

Jay, on the other hand, adores eggs and all things breakfast.

So this is the compromise! This is actually inspired by a veggie has that was available in our lodge in Belize this summer – it had only grated veggies that were seared so perfectly and were the most fresh addition to any breakfast we ordered. I love finding ways to add veggies first thing in the morning, and loved that addition to the menu. This is kind of a cross between potato and veggie hash with lots of spices and chorizo crumbled right in for good measure. The hash is all I want for breakfast, and egg-lovers can add their egg of choice to the dish. Everyone wins!

I secretly only have that “you might also like” section down there to remind myself of fun things I’ve made in the past – I cook a lot, and sometimes we’ll get obsessed with a new recipe for 2 months, eat it a ton, then move on to the next new thing. Like the viral fans that we are.

It’s a sign of the times, and not necessarily in a bad way.

But! I’m bringing back this bacon. Jay invented it early this year and we ate it for … a lot of things … for awhile there, before realizing that a size of bacon with every meal wasn’t really necessary. …